AboutGreg Scholl Expertise Questions on Woodworking, wood finishing and refinishing of all kinds, repairing furniture and wooden objects, Architectural details, Woodturning, carving, tool usage, product usage, some chemistry as it applies to woodworking and related interests,cabinet making and furniture construction/design, etc. I have experience with all manners of colorants, finishes, paints, stains, dyes, glazes, and coatings, wood species recognition and usage,tool recommendations, blade types and recommendation,techniques and methods for many Woodworking related issues, etc.
Experience Fine furniture restorer and cabinet maker for over 30 years,serving high end Antique dealers, Interior designers, Collectors in the CT area. Consulting for area Painting/Decorating and Building contractors on non painting issues..(staining, wood prep.,clear finishing, floor restoration and architectural detail restoration and repair, etc.) Sold, built, serviced, setup Home, Industrial, and Commercial stationary woodworking tools for a major tool retailer in CT. for three years, sold hand and power tools , provided knowledge, parts replacement, service, and on site service, Trade show Demo, and training as well.
Publications Published in Fine Woodworking Magazine (12/97), included on Fine Woodworkings first "Best of Fine Woodworking" CD-ROM (2002) ...("27 year compilation of expert know-how")
Education/Credentials Art School at Silvermine Guild in Norwalk, CT., 9 year apprenticeship in a European run Cabinet and Restoration shop in CT., various classes on subjects having to do with the field. Seminars from major Tool manufacturers, Skil/Bosch, Delta, Powermatic, Ritter, Porter cable, Milwaukee, Dewalt/B&Decker, Performax.
Past/Present Clients Many varied clients including work on Martha Stewarts' Westport, CT. show house, many fine Antique dealers and private collectors in and around Fairfield County and in Woodbury, CT. (the Antiques capital of CT.), Golden Age of Trucking Museum, Wilton Historical Society.
Question My cabinets are walnut stained but seem to have a light paint underneith the stain. The reason I say this is because I started (being an old [76yrs] woman)to sand one of the doors to refinish it because it really looked bad after 37 years. Now I am stuck and don't know what to do. The cabinets are beautifully made and basically in good condition except for the doors beneath my sink and stove. There are 32 large and small doors in my kitchen and these four doors are the only ones that look bad. What can I do to restore them?
Answer Hi Beatrice, Unfortunately I don't think this is a good idea. It takes familiarity with the finishes and techniques used in cabinet finishing to be able to repair these finishes, and sanding is really not the first choice, especially if you've used anything coarser than say, 400 grit wet/dry silicon carbide paper. They wouldn't have paint, but could have colored sealer coats, more than one type and/or color stain coat,Toning coats, etc., and finish matching doors to an existing, aged finish,is a difficult job even for someone skilled in these techniques. I can't possibly direct you in restoring this finish without much more information, and if you don't have any, or little experience doing this type of work, I'd have to caution you that this is not a "do it yourself" project. It's really the realm of the Professional finisher/restorer. Wish I had better news,but it takes a high degree of skill and experience to deal with these finishes. Please feel free to post back- Greg
